Peaception: Online Gaming Stereotypes; Meet The Gamers Behind Them

When you play online as much I do chances are you have come across these online stereotypes: The Rager (people who just rage at things that us normal people would laugh off), The Troll (that random stranger who goes out of his way to annoy you), The Camper (the player who likes to role-play as a plant and will not move away from a specific area), The Try Hard (the competitive players who play at their best all the time) and the lovable hippie gamers who play for fun.

I asked some pertinent questions to players who embody these stereotypes and I shall offer my final thoughts just like my idol Jerry Springer does.

Ragers:

Test Subjects: CJDeWet (Age: 29) and Maverick-Herbst (Age: 23)

Getting to know CJDeWet:

1. Losing, downloading new maps and updates makes him rage. Whenever he loses a match he automatically thinks people are cheating, especially players from Om3n who have killed him a lot. (Gives a new definition to anger management.)
2. Girlfriend accepts burst of anger because in real life he is a shy guy and actually never takes things seriously. (Or so he claims.)
3. Has gone through two routers, broken a 3G dongle, punched and broke his PS3 for freezing, twelve or so controllers have fallen to his rage. (It seems a health hazard to be an electronic product in this household.)
4. He has a heart problem and when he rages it affects him immensely so he has to take pills before he games. (This doesn’t worry me at all and it’s absolutely normal.)

Getting to know Maverick-Herbst:

1. Camping, when you don’t get your shot in, the little boys that sound like girls who like to nag, lag, shotguns, target finders on LMG’s. (I’ve witnessed his rage, you would swear with the shouting he does he was having a prostate exam.)
2. Raging is a way of getting the frustration out and if it’s raging at another player for killing him then that’s how he deals with it. (Therapy is too expensive it seems.)
3. Most players don’t take him seriously so they laugh it off and some players do take him seriously. (There is nothing worrying about a random guy shouting at you for killing him in a game were you are supposed to kill him.)
4. He is a peaceful rager and no electronic device has been broken because he worked hard to get it. (At least he’s economically minded.)

Final thoughts on Ragers:

Every now and again most gamers will rage. It’s all good if it’s in the heat of the moment but when it affects your health as well as your finances due to things being broken then it’s time to invest in a good therapist or better yet, a Michael Bolton CD.

Try Hards:

Test Subjects: MMB_Grusomegill (Age: 40) and F34R_J4K3S (Age: 28)

Getting to know MMB_Grusomegill:

1. Takes a lot of concentration to play at your best and it’s tiring. (When did tiring become fun?)
2. Other games, of course it’s better to be the best, but when it comes to FPS you need to be on top. (Or the bottom is fine, trust me the game will not explode if you finished last now and again.)
3. Other competitive players deliberately look for easy lobbies to better their stats but it’s better to play against other better players as they are more of a challenge. (It’s a very noble idea but who has ever gotten upset over an easy kill?)
4. He has a son who is 13 that loves gaming and plans to do programming and video game design at a later stage. (Such a sweet fact and it’s nice to know that kids are interested in the gaming industry.)

Getting to know F34R_J4K3S:

1. It’s fun always playing at your best. (If you are in boot camp then this would apply but at some point it gets tiring.)
2. He works, spends time with family, but still manages to play. Some of the best players don’t play the game that much. (Only players who are at a Yoda level can not play a game a lot but still be great at it.)
3. F34R is actually grooming young players to keep the clan name alive. (An army of little Try Hards is enough to make me quit online gaming, but in all seriousness, a commendable thing mentoring young players.)
4. It’s a great learning experience for the lower skilled players to play against better skilled players, if you play against stronger players that’s how you will learn. (Said no one ever who has been victim to the K9 unit and Swarm score streak courtesy of J4K3S.)
5. He used to rage before but now instead of raging he will hunt down a player who is close to a big score streak to stop them from getting it. (Now that’s just evil, going out of your way to stop another player from owning.)

Final thoughts on Try Hards:

Everyone has a competitive streak but when its starts being an obsession to always be the best then it takes the fun out of playing and maybe it’s time to start investing in a Monopoly or a Barbie game.

Trolls:

Test Subjects: Dippidy (Age: 20) and Wangmuncherer (Age: Unknown)

Getting to know Dippidy:

1. Only CoD appeals to him when gaming online because its easier to troll players but he loves to troll at FIFA as well by scoring own goals. (I think he missed out on a couple of hugs.)
2. He makes fun of people who hate on him; it does not faze him and is a sign of a successful troll if he receives death threats. (Death threats are a sign of success only if you are Chuck Norris.)
3. Most of the multiple accounts he makes is to make fun of other gamers and it’s not to hide his identity. (Do you know how much time it takes to set up an online account? One thing I can say, he is dedicated.)
4. He enjoys trolling clans like AoW and MMB and loves hearing other players rage. Basically multiplayer would be boring without trolls like him. (It would be boring but less irritating as well.)

Getting to know Wangmuncherer:

1. He handles the hate he gets with politeness or not replying which makes the other players rage. (Gives new meaning to killing them with kindness.)
2. Hides his identity mainly because the gaming community would shun him if they knew his true identity and mostly the pro players shun trolling. (I’m expecting a Star Wars “Luke, I am your father” moment if he does reveal his identity and I’m actually hoping it’s not my father.)
3. Some players have threatened him with tracing his IP and finding him, which is not possible, but if someone had to show up at his house unannounced he would shoot them. (The funny thing is he said this while laughing but he was dead serious so stay away from his house or call ahead, we don’t want another Oscar incident.)
4. Getting a reaction from other players when they find you boosting is fun but it’s lame to boost when you’re a serious player and not trolling. Basically a troll does what he does to get a reaction. (Words of wisdom so don’t be lame and boost, just leave it to the trolls, and for those who don’t know what boosting is, it’s exploiting glitches in the game so you can cheat.)
5. He has made RAG3, Toxik, MMB and basically any clan with a mic rage. If people online were not so rude and didn’t take the game seriously like most players in clans, there would be no need for trolls. (So the lesson to be learned here is: mics are bad around trolls, so resort to sign language.)

Final thoughts on Trolls:

I actually find trolls entertaining and to be honest playing online would be a tad boring without them. If you find yourself a victim of one, don’t react to them and they will eventually move on because it’s a well-known fact most trolls suffer from A.D.D. and get bored easily.

Playing For Fun:

Test Subjects: Slipknot663 (Age: 27) and Kube (Age: 31)

Getting to know Slipknot663:

1. He would never compare himself to a hippie but if he had to have one, his hippie name would be Moonshine. Gamers who play for fun are more people you would go have a beer with. (So basically alcoholics tend to play for fun online.)
2. He is competitive in a friendly way, he would never threaten to kill you if he loses. (Sounds like a threat to me.)
3. He doesn’t gossip but he likes to talk s**t about other players and he is not a F34R groupie even though F34R_J4K3S has more K9 units than he has UAV’s. (We got a badass over here, ladies and gentlemen.)
4. F34R, Toxik and 13 k clans should adopt his style of play with regards to playing for fun because they tend to be a tad too serious, or better yet, they should merge and play together as friends and hug each other. (For a player who plays for fun, he sure has strong opinions.)

Getting to know Kube:

1. Clans changed the way online gaming was approached and most players play competitively. Having fun without being competitive is the best way to play. (Clans are the root of all evil it seems.)
2. He enjoys playing online because he has fun with friends and he enjoys playing co-op as well, even though he believes multiplayer detracts from the single player. (It’s still fun, that’s all that matters.)
3. What makes him rage is getting spawn killed (just when you spawn, you get killed) and one instance when he was playing BF3 and his team mates kept killing and reviving him only to kill him again until he left the lobby. (Some people just want to watch the world burn… how can you do that to your own team mate? But it’s still funny.)
4. There are no games he plays on a competitive level, but maybe now and again, a competitive streak comes out when playing racing games. Being number one should only matter if you play professionally. (But still, he does get competitive so I guess everyone has a dark side.)

Final thoughts on gamers who play for fun:

Almost all gamers play for fun but if you take that element out of the equation you just become a grumpy gamer that no one wants to play with, so if you are not having fun while gaming, you are doing it wrong…

Campers:

Test Subjects: Francois_Jac (Age: 27) and FEAR DA GSX (Age: 22)

Getting to know Francois_Jac:

1. He enjoys sitting in a corner and waiting for other players. Just like in church where there is a confessional and you reconcile with God, in camping you go to a corner and reconcile yourself with the idea of killing other players who run past you. (A religious camper, now I’ve read it all.)
2. He finds running around difficult because you can’t dodge a bullet you can’t see. (But to be fair most of us never see those bullets coming.)
3. Camping is tactical in cases where you are close to a big score streak. (Or also tactical when you just want to annoy people and distract them from the goal of the game.)
4. He does rage at other campers because they are camping at a spot he didn’t think of. (At least he is honest.)

Getting to know FEAR DA GSX:

1. He loves camping because you get free kills, your score streaks are higher and you get to hear people rage. (It’s the camper trifecta.)
2. Too much work is involved by running around, just wait for people to come to you. (That didn’t sound paedo at all.)
3. Camping is a way to improve your stats and there is no law that says you can’t stand in one spot for more than two seconds. (There is no law that says you are not allowed to slap stupid people but no one does it though.)
4. There can only be one camper in a lobby and it should be him, that’s why he rages at other campers. (One camper per gaming session seems a reasonable demand.)

Final thought on Campers:

Campers must burn in the fiery pits of hell, but in all seriousness campers can be annoying. But also, it can be a great tactic, so let them be, or better yet, just kill them.

At the end of the day, people game online to escape the stress of the everyday world and whichever stereotype you fall into, remember: online gaming wouldn’t be as entertaining if it didn’t have players like you.

Spammy comments to win a keyboard/mouse do not count, remember? Dean said so!

LAblak22

I don’t want to win a keyboard and forward slash mouse. Also, what keyboard and mouse?

http://twitter.com/MatuMikey Michael Matusowsky

Since you don’t know about it, not telling…. :D

Gamer

Feel the urge to hug a tree right now….. sigh

Pea_Peralta

Thats a good or a bad thing?

CataclysmicDawn

can’t doge a bullet <- "Dodge" :)

Having played with many of these guys (thankfully not the Try-Hards, because fuck swarms and K9 units), I can see where this comes in. On that note, please inform Mavrick he's getting tampons and a Michael Buble CD for Christmas.

Pea_Peralta

Lol i saw that typo why cant you be a gentleman and ignore it..

CataclysmicDawn

We don’t ignore typos, P. We correct them.

Pea_Peralta

Lol you should tattoo that on your head..

CataclysmicDawn

Hmmmm… Considering it.

Actually, wait:
Only if you get “Doged the bullet” tattooed on yours :D

Pea_Peralta

Lol touche B

http://twitter.com/MatuMikey Michael Matusowsky

That feel when no “competitive players” interviews :(…. Competitive people are players too <3…

Pea_Peralta

I know actually Jakes is one next time when i do an interview you will be my first port of call..

http://twitter.com/MatuMikey Michael Matusowsky

Awesome… :D… Make me feel like a celebrity :P.

wolftrap01

I enjoyed reading this. I don’t fall into any of these categories though. I’m the dude running around reviving everyone and get shot in the back all the time :-(

Pea_Peralta

Lol reminds me of when i played Killzone would run around as a medic, watch people die then die..

CataclysmicDawn

Guilty for that. Sorry :D

wolftrap01

that’s exactly what happens to me!

Yashaar Mall

So basically, you’d fall into the “YOLO” category?

wolftrap01

Forever YOLOing brah

http://www.lomag.co.za/ NeoN

I definitely fall under the “try hard” column, regarding my online gaming. I fall back on my single-player gaming for fun and relaxation. The hard part is balancing the two.

Yashaar Mall

Exactly the same!

http://twitter.com/deshni_naidoo Deshni Naidoo

What do you call the person who dies all the time? Oh… the noob. Well that’s me.

Yashaar Mall

Or the Wolftrap. :P

Richard Dubbeld

for some reason it feels like non of these apply to Halo players, or at least the Halo players i’ve encountered. or maybe Halo players have bits of all of these, i know i do…

this specificity must be a BF or COD thing… tsk tsk…

did these gamers know you were using there nicks in a psychological study?

Richard Dubbeld

addendum: in Halo i have noticed that, because it’s such a fun and chaotic game, one can get away with doing all this stuff and few will judge you.

i don’t find COD or BF fun the way Halo is… maybe it’s the lack of pew pews…